Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-01-11
CONGRESSIONAL.
The Interstate Commerce Bill Dis.
cussed by Beck, Cullom, George.
Harris, Aldrich and Stanford.
House, Among Thorn One for
Gigantic Railroad Scheme.
MIX CONGRESS.
THE SENATE.

jan. lO.--t"OhE LuC
communications presented by the presid-
ing officer to the senate and referred
was one from the secretary OF war,
transmitting q report OF the board OF
engineers in regard to bridging the Mis-
Sissippi at or near St. Louis. Several pc
titlons were presented and referred.
Mr.. Hoar, from the select committee on
centennial celebrations, reported reso-
luton declaring it eXpedient that action
be taken by congress for the due celebra-
ton in Washington about April 80, 1889,
of the centennial OF the adoption OF the
constitution and of .he discovery OF
America, and directing the committee to
consider and prepare the best mode OF
celebration. Adopted.
On motion of Mr.. Dawes the house
amendment to the senate bill to provide
lands for the Indians in severalty, were
uon-coIcurred in and conference asked.
The presiding officer presenting the
remonstrance of the Minneapolis board
of trade against sections and . on
pooling and short aad lons-haul sec
tons of the Interstate commerce Dill,
it was ordered printed.
The senate then proceeded to consider
the Interstate commerce bill and was ad-
dressed by Mr.. Beck in fav>r of the
adoption of the conference report.
"That report" he said, (which must be
either adopted or rejected as whole
presented the issue fairly between those
who believed the great interstate rail-
ways were, and of right ought to be sub
iect to law, and those VINO thought they
ought to be law unto themselves. No
bill could be framed which the railroad
advocates would not oppose. Because
the bill was supposed to be imperfect and
to have some shortcomings they insisted
the railroads should continue TO exercise
unlimited control of Interstate COM
1nerce The defeat Of the pres
ent measure either directly or
5y amendment would accomplish their
purpose. 1t was most apparent that the
failure of congress to pass law to punish
railroad official guilty of determinations
and extortiGus was simply license to
continue the practice, and no senator
would attempt to Justify that. He be-
lieyed that the country would accept the
bill as an honest, earnest effort to break
the system of favoritism and ex-
tortion which some railroad man
ayers had exercised and maintained
for the last twenty years" He read from
a book on the railroads Of the republic, by
J. +. Hudson, the chapter upon the his
tory of the Standard Oil Company, which
is represented as having in eighteen
months received from the railroad COM
paries rebates amounting TO $4,000, 600,
and having thus crushed out ali competi
ton in the oil trade. He recommended
that chapter be shown those boards of
,hotr Of nnr11In nrpn
were now so earnestly protesting against
the passage of the bill, and he asserted
ifthe facts therein stated were laid before
any commercial body in America
not one of them would vote for Continu-
ance of system under which such mon
strous outrages had been committed and
might be repeated. He declared not only
the commerce of the country, but the for
tunes of all engaged were at the mercy OF
q few railroad magnates, and yet congress
was told by the boards Of trade profess
ing to be the guardians OF commerce that
it would ruin the country if it should pre-
vent Determinations in rates and
drawbacks. He knew of no higher
radiance CT the omnipoterce OF these rail
road people than their ability to OBTAIN
from respectable body of trade such
resolutions as were daily sent to the SEN
ate urging them not TO Interfere with
railroad despotism. The great funda-
mental principle which the passage of this
bill would establish was that congress
not only proposed hereafter to regulate
carriers, but compel them to do equal
and exact justice to all persons deal
ing with them. The original
bill had passed the senate last session by
a vote of ~ to 4, and had passed the
house bv vote of 1872 to IL, and now
when the conferes of both houses had
agreed upon this bill il seemed to him 1t
ought to become law. No man could
Justify the conduct Of many great railroad
corporations in The treatment OF the vast
interests conaded to their care and man
agement. He referred to the
anthracite coal pool as speci-
men of combination against the public
interest, and stated the aggregate
capitalization of the Comp2nys engaged
ID it was $500, coo OO0 while the actual
cost was only Sllt,000,00o. In conclu-
sion he sSid he was not an enemy of rail
roads, they had done more than all other
agencies to develop the resources OF this
continent, but he would require them to
do equal and exact justice to all. Be-
lieving the bill would do SO without in
Jury to any OF the legitimate rights of
railroads ne should vote for it.
Mr.. Cullom addressed the senate in IA
yor OF the conference report, combining
his remarks principally to the fourth sec
ton. as to The long and short maui this
section, he said, simply undertakes TO lay
down in specific terms rule or principle
which, as have always con-
tended, is already in effect con-
tanned in other provisions OF the bill.
The first requirement Of the bill on
the subject OF rates is found in the first
section, and is that all rates shall be
reasonable aGd just. This is in effect a
declaration that under similar circum-
stances and conditions greater sum
shall not be charged for q shorter than
for longer distance, because under
such circumstances it would not be
reasonable aud just to make such charge.
The next requirement OF the bill that
affects this question is found in the first
part of the third section, which forbids
giving undue or unreasonable reference
or advantage to any particular LEGALITY.
This is likewise declaration that
grester sum shall not be charged for a
shorter than TO- q longer maui under sim
liar circumstances ami conditions, be-
cause spch charge would be the making